Ground meats do not require a rest period.įreshwater fish should not be served raw (as sushi) and should be eaten only after it has been cooked to a temperature of 145° F (63° C) or properly frozen at temperatures below that of typical home freezers.

Whole cuts of meat should rest for 3 minutes after being cooked before carving or consuming. If the meat is ground, a cooking temperature of at least 160° F (71° C) is recommended. Thoroughly cooking whole cuts of meat and freshwater fish to a temperature of more than 145° F (63° C) for 3 minutes or more. The first line of defense against tapeworms is Rarely, cysts develop in the eyes, sometimes causing blindness, or in the spinal cord, sometimes causing muscle weakness or paralysis. Cysts in the brain and the tissues covering the brain (meninges) can result in headaches, seizures, confusion, or other neurologic symptoms. These cysts can cause severe, sometimes life-threatening symptoms years after the initial infection, when the cysts start to deteriorate and cause inflammation. The fish tapeworm can cause anemia because it absorbs vitamin B12, which is necessary for red blood cells to be produced.Ĭysticercosis symptoms are caused by cysts that form in the brain and other organs (such as the spinal cord, liver, lungs, and eyes). The dwarf tapeworm is more likely than other tapeworms to cause abdominal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal discomfort, loss of appetite, and weight loss. Occasionally, people with a tapeworm can feel a piece of the worm move out through the anus or see part of the ribbon-like tapeworm in stool. Symptoms of Tapeworm InfectionĪlthough adult tapeworms in the intestine usually cause no symptoms, some people experience upper abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, and other symptoms. In people, this form of the disease is called cysticercosis. The spheres penetrate the intestinal wall and travel to the brain, muscles, other organs, or tissue under the skin, where they form cysts. People with an adult worm in their intestine may reinfect themselves when they swallow eggs from their stool (for example, in contaminated food or water) or possibly when egg-bearing segments of the worm (proglottids) move from their intestine into the stomach and release eggs (autoinfection).Īs in animal intermediate hosts, the eggs develop into spheres containing larvae (oncospheres) when they reach the intestine. They transfer the eggs to their mouth after contact with an infected person or with contaminated clothing and furniture. They swallow the pork tapeworm eggs in food or water contaminated with human stool. People may become an intermediate host when one of the following occurs: People who ingest the eggs of the pork tapeworm can become an intermediate host for the tapeworm (people cannot be intermediate hosts for the beef and fish tapeworms). The worms then grow in length and begin producing eggs. The cysts hatch and develop into adult worms, which latch onto the wall of the intestine. People acquire the parasite by eating the cysts in raw or undercooked meat or certain types of freshwater fish. The larvae invade the intestinal wall and are carried through the bloodstream to skeletal muscle and other tissues, where they form cysts. The eggs hatch into larvae in the intermediate host.

If untreated human waste is released into the environment, the eggs may be ingested by intermediate hosts, such as pigs, cattle, or, in the case of fish tapeworms, small freshwater crustaceans, which are in turn ingested by fish. Egg-bearing sections of the worm (proglottids) are passed in the stool. People are considered the definitive host because adult tapeworms live in their intestine. The pork, beef, and fish tapeworms are large, flat, ribbon-like worms that live in the intestine of people and can grow 15 to 30 feet (4.5 to 9 meters) in length. Taenia asiatica, which is acquired by eating pork in Asia (Asian tapeworm) Several species of tapeworms can cause infection in people. (See also Overview of Parasitic Infections. Thoroughly cooking pork, beef, and freshwater fish can help prevent the infection. The pork tapeworm can also form cysts in the brain and elsewhere in the body (called cysticercosis ).Ĭysts in the brain can cause various symptoms, such as headaches, seizures, confusion, and sometimes severe, life-threatening disease.ĭoctors diagnose intestinal tapeworm infection by finding worm segments or eggs in a stool sample, and they diagnose cysticercosis by identifying cysts elsewhere in the body by doing imaging or blood tests. Adult tapeworms, which live in people's intestine, usually cause no symptoms, but they may cause abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, and weight loss.

Tape worm information